América Scarfò

Born in Buenos Aires into a family of Calabrian origin that had arrived in Argentina at the beginning of the twentieth century. Her father, Pietro, was born in Portigliola, and her mother, Caterina Romano, was born in Tropea. They left for South America shortly after getting married and having their first child, Antonio. Once settled in Buenos Aires, the couple had seven more children: José, Alejandro, Domingo, Paulino, Josefina América, Santa, and Asunto.

América attended the teacher-training institute on Calle Estanislao Zeballos in Buenos Aires. She was a brilliant 15-year-old student when she met the Italian anarchist Severino Di Giovanni, who had come to the Scarfò family home looking for a place to stay. This encounter would shape the fate not only of Di Giovanni but also of Josefina América and two of her brothers, Paulino and Alejandro.

América fell in love with Severino and embraced his anarchist ideals. Her brothers were also fascinated by the Italian anarchist's ideas and began their own anarchist activism. An anarchist group dedicated to expropriation and direct action was formed, and the Scarfò brothers were among its members. Severino Di Giovanni was a man of action, but he also understood the importance of culture and propaganda. With the help of his comrades, he therefore decided to establish the publishing house Il Culmine.

Following the sensational assassination of the anarchist Emilio López Arango, editor of the newspaper La Protesta, for which Severino Di Giovanni himself was accused, the group was dismantled. Di Giovanni was sentenced to death along with Paulino Scarfò. Severino was executed by firing squad on February 1, 1931. Paulino suffered the same fate the following day.

Before the execution, América was given the opportunity to meet her beloved, who urged her to continue her studies and establish a new publishing house. The Italian-Argentine anarchist would fulfill his wishes: she earned a degree in Literature, later teaching Italian literature at the University of Buenos Aires, and founded a libertarian publishing house.

In 1951, she decided to visit Italy to see the places where her parents and Severino had been born. In her own way, she continued her anarchist activism until her death in Buenos Aires on August 26, 2006.

The letters from her beloved Severino, which had been confiscated by the police, were not returned to her until 1998.